Saw this at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival
"Victim/Suspect" is a documentary about young women who tell the police they've been sexually assaulted, but instead of finding justice, they're charged with the crime of making a false report, arrested, and even imprisoned by the system they believed would protect them. Throughout the perspective of journalists, the film examines them trying to seek justice for those who are given injustice. The entire film has interesting concepts and themes explored while being mostly standard.
Director Nancy Schwartzman provides a good direction and the film's tone, style, and presentation of what the film is going for. The subjects of rape and injustice are tough to watch and she provides good commentary about how the system is broken and it needs to change. Security footage of confessions and interrogation of the victims with police are pretty upsetting and hard to watch alongside with interviews from the main participants themselves.
Because the story is told from an Journalist's perspective, some of the pacing did drag a little and I wish the story was explored a little more from the participants rather than the Journalists because it creates an uneven structure of the documentary. At some points, the soundtrack was repetitive and style felt something you would see from Netflix.
Overall, it's not the best documentary on this subject but it's still well-informed and interesting to observe. It can be tough for some but I do recommend for those who are into journalism or documentaries about injustice.
Rating: B-
"Victim/Suspect" is a documentary about young women who tell the police they've been sexually assaulted, but instead of finding justice, they're charged with the crime of making a false report, arrested, and even imprisoned by the system they believed would protect them. Throughout the perspective of journalists, the film examines them trying to seek justice for those who are given injustice. The entire film has interesting concepts and themes explored while being mostly standard.
Director Nancy Schwartzman provides a good direction and the film's tone, style, and presentation of what the film is going for. The subjects of rape and injustice are tough to watch and she provides good commentary about how the system is broken and it needs to change. Security footage of confessions and interrogation of the victims with police are pretty upsetting and hard to watch alongside with interviews from the main participants themselves.
Because the story is told from an Journalist's perspective, some of the pacing did drag a little and I wish the story was explored a little more from the participants rather than the Journalists because it creates an uneven structure of the documentary. At some points, the soundtrack was repetitive and style felt something you would see from Netflix.
Overall, it's not the best documentary on this subject but it's still well-informed and interesting to observe. It can be tough for some but I do recommend for those who are into journalism or documentaries about injustice.
Rating: B-